Suited For Success: 25 Inspirational Stories on Getting Prepared for Your Journey to Success

By PK Kersey

Achieving success is a deep-seated desire that burns within every human being. However, many people struggle to attain it because there is no roadmap. But what if there were markers to help you along your journey? What if there was an honest and empowering guide offering life-chang

• Language: English
• Publisher: Purposely Created Publishing Group
• Release date: Jun 12, 2018
• ISBN: 9781947054981

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SUITED FOR SUCCESS

Published by Purposely Created Publishing Group™

Copyright © 2018 PK Kersey

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, taping, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews, quotes, or references.

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Table of Contents

Foreword

Chapter 1: Black Men Rock

PK Kersey

Chapter 2: You Don’t Know My Story

Shannon Lanier

Chapter 3: #EVERYBODYMatters

Charles A. Archer

Chapter 4: Faith. Grind. Inspire.

Dr. Jean Alerte

Chapter 5: Full Circle

Jamael Thompson

Chapter 6: Achieve Your Version of Success

Aaron S. Jenkins

Chapter 7: Let Your Situation Be Your Motivation

Randall E. Toby

Chapter 8: I Am Not a Bastard

Dr. Oliver T. Reid

Chapter 9: You’re Not Good Enough

George Rice III

Chapter 10: You’re a Winner

Larry Scott Blackmon

Chapter 11: Life Is Good!

Dwayne Booker

Chapter 12: Statistics

Derrick J. Redmond

Chapter 13: Catalytic Leadership

Paul Coty

Chapter 14: Rising Above Feelings of Rejection

Steven Carter

Chapter 15: Secrets to Employment Success

Craig Palma

Chapter 16: The Facts of My Life

Xavier Porter

Chapter 17: The Path to Success

Troy Harrison

Chapter 18: RISE! From Thought to Fruition

David Marquis

Chapter 19: Till Faith No Longer Possesses Parameters

Norman Grayson

Chapter 20: Trend God

Sherrod Kersey

Chapter 21: Mentoring

Darrell J. Edmonds

Chapter 22: The Latter Shall Be Greater

Dimitri David Jr

Chapter 23: What Came First, the Growth or the Pain?

Cyriac St. Vil

Chapter 24: Metamorphosis: Transforming Yourself into What You Need to Become

Conrad W. Higgins

Chapter 25: My Death Gave Birth to a New Me

Ty Brown

Sources

About the Authors

Foreword

To me, Pastor Gerard Kersey is a remarkable individual. As his pastor, I have watched and discerned the call of God on his life. He is not just someone with a strong spiritual pulse but a family man, a family man who loves his wife and his children dearly. He has proven himself to be a leader, not only in his church but in his home. The scriptures teach us that we will know them – not by their words, but by their fruits (Matthew 7:15). Pastor Gerard Kersey has taken the time to write a book that I believe will bless those who understand that leadership is not a right but a privilege, and that leading is never easy but requires Godly wisdom.

I believe that every life will face challenges and hardships, however, we can be encouraged to know that if others have risen above their circumstances, we can too. In the mind of God, there is no defeat, no trouble, and no pain. But we as spirit beings, trapped in this human body, will face adversity for the purposes of mastering the human experience.

Many books are written, but not many inspire. I believe that this book is a must-read for anyone who has faced adversity but who still always believed that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

This book is designed to be evidence that our trials were never meant to derail us, but rather to propel us into our destiny. It is my prayer that, as you turn the pages of this book, your mind will be renewed, your heart encouraged, and your life forever changed. For as a man thinketh, in his heart so is he (Proverbs 23:7).

Paul B. Mitchell

Sr. Pastor, Changing Lives Christian Center

Chapter 1

Black Men Rock

PK Kersey

I know... I know... that is not an original title for my chapter. Black women have been rocking the world for over 10 years now. In my opinion, they’ve been rocking since the beginning of time, but that’s another story. I love how black women celebrate one another and cheer each other on. I am a big social media user, and throughout my timeline, I see a women’s conference here, an empowerment seminar here, etc. Women are really capitalizing on the power of unity and collaboration. The truth is, I love it and pray they continue because that is where true power lies.

Speaking of social media, one day as I was going through Facebook, I saw a post by the talented brand strategist, Shadé Adu. She was seeking individuals to be a part of her book project Renegotiating Greatness: 21 Lessons from Bold Entrepreneurs Who Have Built Successful Brands. Having worked with her before, I knew this was something I wanted to jump on. I immediately contacted her and confirmed my spot. To my surprise, I was the only male on the project. It was then that I realized that I could not let women monopolize this collaboration key. I started planning ways to bring men together so that we can see the measure of success women are seeing. Men, especially black men, have long had the stigma that: we will not stick together nor support one another; we will not share information, networks, or success secrets; and that we are not hard-working, but shallow, insensitive, and lazy. People have many stereotypes and images of us that are not accurate at all. I know they are not accurate because I personally know plenty of black men that are just the opposite. I was fortunate to be included in the Black Enterprise series, Modern Men, where they celebrated black men who are changing the narrative. It is an awesome collection of amazing men who are taking their fate into their own hands and helping the next generation to achieve even more. Some of those modern men are included in this book. I believe the stories here will be lessons that we will look to for years to come. I put this book together to show the world that no matter where you start, no matter what challenges you face, no matter how hard it seems––SUCCESS IS POSSIBLE. The stories you read here are empowering, transparent, honest, powerful, and life changing. Some of these men I know personally and some I don’t, but what I do know is that they have put in work. After reading this book, you will no longer be able to say, I can’t because of reading the stories of so many who did! And one day (yes, I said it), we will turn on BET, Centric, or OWN and see black men rock!!!

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Growing up in Brooklyn, New York, in the 70s was not an easy task. It was tough and challenging. Brooklyn 2017 is a whole lot different from Brooklyn 1970. Not that today is Heaven, but it is a gentler and kinder version of itself. That is a good thing. I am the oldest of three children that lived with my mother and stepfather (I have another brother from my biological father), so I had no big brother to assist me with schools, bullies, and such. I had to hold it down on my own. Also, I was not a tough kid; I was more of an introvert and a huge computer geek. I mean, I played sports heavy, but I wasn’t a fighter. That being the case, I had to have a lot of male friends to feel safe in the streets of Brooklyn. It was there that I learned a lot of my ways. With both parents working, I spent a lot of my days hanging with my friends. Among boys in that era, you could not show any weakness, you did not help each other, you did not celebrate each other, nor did you hide each other’s shortcomings. In fact, we made fun of as many shortcomings as we could. We ridiculed any sign of weakness. It was unrelenting. At no moment could you lapse from being on your game because it would be exposed immediately and aggressively. It was during those years, and from my friends, that I received my training on being a man. We knew no other way. This was what we learned from the older kids and would teach the younger ones. I believe many men have the same example from their childhood memories. As a result of being boys who did not help each other, boys who did not celebrate one other, and boys who did not hide friends’ shortcomings, we become men who have these same characteristics. I was fortunate to have both parents in my household. That gave me some balance and aided in my ability to mature my mindset. I gradually moved out of that mindset as my younger brother came along, I attended college, and the teachings of my parents began to take hold. However, many of those boys did not have both parents or alternative teaching to assist them, so they kept that mindset. Often, when I am in a workplace or at an event, I will speak to men and get no reply. Or they may say, Hello with their mouth but, Get away from me with everything else. While there could be many reasons for this, I often think that their childhood or how they were raised plays a role. Men who were isolated will not collaborate or build with other men. They might even be extremely successful, but only as an individual, not as a part of a community. I believe many good things can be done alone, but great and amazing things can only be done together.

Wake Up Call

Often during this life journey, we have encounters with people or go through circumstances that seem insignificant to the big picture. Things happen to us and we believe that they have no bearing on our life, but I must disagree with that. I believe that every circumstance we encounter and every person we come across plays a role in our development and the process of our success. Whenever I meet someone, I try to get their name, profession, and strike up a quick conversation because I have seen my life change drastically because of relationships.

I encourage you to speak to more people, step out of your comfort zone, smile, and talk about your true vision and dreams. Follow the example of every person in this book and change your life by doing what you thought you couldn’t do.

After finishing high school and dabbling in college (I say dabbling because I didn’t graduate), it was fortunate that I took a test with the state of New York and got a job with the motor vehicles department. Let me backtrack. I was a great high school student, but a horrible college student. I really cannot say I tried. I was so interested in coming out of my introverted shell that I fell in love with dancing (it was the hip hop, house era), and lost my mind with house music. I figured that I would work at the motor vehicles department for a little while until I got a better job. I stayed there for 24 years. I got promoted to the position of office manager and learned valuable information throughout my years. I was pretty much on cruise control with my life until one day we got an email from the governor stating that we would be receiving a one percent raise that year. We had not received a raise in two years. I realized that my salary, vacation, days off, and lunches were determined by other people. I was basically working at a place I didn’t want to be, for a salary I didn’t want, and a supervisor I couldn’t stand. I had to grasp that my choices led me there and my choices could lead me out.

I had always wanted to do something big as far as being a business owner, I just didn’t know what. I tried WorldVentures, Prepaid Legal, Primerica, Ambit, etc., but nothing clicked. One day I said, Lord, how can I make more money? The answer I heard was, Give away suits to men in need. What? I asked. How can giving away suits to men impact my bottom line? I mean, it’s great for them but what about me? Little did I know, that moment would change my entire life. It wasn’t so much the giving away of suits as it was the obedience to what He said. While I was working a giving principal (give and it shall be given back to you), I was also walking into my purpose. Unbeknownst to me, all those years at the motor vehicles department, all the failed businesses, and all the arguments with DMV management was a part of this process. I liken it to the movie The Karate Kid where all he thought he was doing was washing the master’s car and painting the master’s house when he was actually preparing himself for his future greatness. We never enjoy or look forward to the process, but it makes or breaks us. I truly believe that everyone can achieve an incredible level of greatness, but it requires completing that process.

Time to Level Up

I can no longer tolerate people saying that they don’t have time to focus on their vision or dreams. To me, that is no longer acceptable. When someone tells me that, all I hear is that they don’t want to, they are too lazy, or they are happy where they are. I would prefer that they say those things instead of saying that they don’t have time. When I received the message to give away suits to men, I had no clue where I should start. During the process of giving the vision life, I was married, a father of two, working a job at NYS DMV (you know how crazy that place is), an assistant pastor at my church, and taking care of a sick uncle. In no way did I have time to start a nonprofit, run a social media management company, and author four books. However, as I began to listen to motivational videos daily for encouragement, I realized I had to do it. There is no way you can listen to Les Brown, Myles Munroe, Tony Robbins, and Mel Robbins among others, and not be pushed to action. I realized I had to make the time to achieve my greatness. I had to learn my passion, enhance my gifts, and increase my knowledge. I truly saw no way out of my DMV job until I began to feed my spirit and mind with positivity and believe that wealth was possible for me and my family. There is something about belief that changes your outlook. There is a big difference between believing that you are a failure who is trying to be successful and believing that you are successful and resisting failure. So, I pushed myself to get up earlier, and work during my lunch break and after work. I make time to exercise, meditate, and plan my days.

No one said success would be easy, but it is definitely possible and well worth it. Success is truly working hard, with no apparent results for years, knowing the ultimate results will soon appear. Success is also a continual thing. Once you reach one level, you get more ideas and have a desire to reach new levels. As you do, you teach others who want to come with you, just as I was a part of Shadé’s book and took others to make my own. Someone in this book will do the same because success begets success. As for the suits God told me to give away, not only was That Suits You started over five years ago, but it has suited over 7,300 individuals, trained thousands of individuals, and inspired millions. We have been fortunate to have been supported by HBO, ABC, NBC, and MLB among many others. Something that was only a thought had the ability to change the trajectory of my life. But, I had to give birth to what was in my heart! I implore you to not let the dream lie dormant. I beg you to not allow fear to reign supreme. Life is too short to work for years at a place you hate when greatness is only a heartbeat away!

Chapter 2

You Don’t Know My Story

Shannon Lanier

The story of my life may look pretty perfect, at least on social media. You see me as an Emmy Award-winning television show host and global news anchor that has a smart and beautiful wife, three charming kids, and a huge home, but my story didn’t start where I am now. These days, you may know me from my work as a TV host on Arise Entertainment 360, a correspondent on Our World with Black Enterprise or anchor on FiOS1 News in New York. Many have seen me interview tons of celebrities like Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo, Patti LaBelle, Tyler Perry, Mary J. Blige, Terrence Howard, and Taraji P. Henson to name a few.

If you don’t watch much TV, you may also be familiar with my famous relative, President Thomas Jefferson. I am the great, great-great-great-great-great-grandson of Jefferson and his slave, Sally Hemings, through their son, Madison Hemings. Several years ago, I was blessed enough to publish a book (with Random House) about my family called, Jefferson’s Children: The Story of One American Family. I co-authored the book with photojournalist, Jane Feldman. The book takes readers on a journey to meet other descendants of Jefferson, both through his wife Martha’s side of the family as well as his slave Sally’s side of the family. We spoke to four generations of descendants of all ages.

I always tell people you may be surprised about what you find in